The EU goes on the diplomatic offensive after the last outbreak of violence between Armenia and Azerbaijan through the enclave of Nagorno Karabakh. Negotiators from both countries met on Tuesday afternoon in Brussels with senior European officials. The appointment was a mere thermometer to measure the temperature of the postures and, above all, to prepare the ground for Granadawhere the two leaders will meet on October 5th on the margins of the third summit of the European Political Community.
The Armenian Prime Minister, Nicole Pashinianand the Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyevfaces will be seen in the Spanish city with the intention of face a dialogue whose ultimate objective is to advance towards a peace treaty that puts an end to decades of shocks continuous and intermittent. The event will be attended by the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the French president Emmanuel Macron. For now, the meeting held in the community capital by the secretary of the Armenian Security Council, Armen Grigoryanand the Azerbaijani foreign policy advisor, Hikmet Hajiyevwith experts from the EU, Germany and France, has served to seal an intention to advance the normalization of their relations during their visit to the Andalusian city.
“Grigoryan and Hajiyec have discussed possible concrete steps to advance the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan at the next meeting [en Granada]For example, in the border delimitationsecurity, connectivity, humanitarian affairs and a comprehensive peace treaty,” summarizes the final statement issued by the European Council.
September is the umpteenth military clash between both since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the most powerful since the last war in 2020. On this occasion, Azerbaijan consolidated its position and strength after six weeks of intense fighting, which ended with a ceasefire sponsored by Russia, who deployed troops for supervision.
The shakeup to the geopolitical table that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has left also finds its impact in this region of the Caucasus. Moscow is focusing its energies and forces on Military intervention which started 19 months ago now. In parallel, its historic relationship with Armenia is faltering after Yerevan has accused Moscow of a lukewarm response to preserve the status quo of Nagorno Karabakh. For its part, the Kremlin has not liked the Pashinian’s rapprochement with the West in terms of security.